Come Back Home
by LeicesterRed
Summary: School's over, but her days in the halls of St Trinian's are not. Life is almost perfect. Annabelle is just missing one crucial thing; little does she know there will soon be a chance to put that old piece of the puzzle back in her life. Kelly/Annabelle
1. Every Beginning

_A/N: Well, this is my first attempt at a fanfic in a looong time. The pairing here is going to be (eventually, it starts slow) **Kelly/Annabelle.** I'd like to add, I don't own St Trinians or any of the characters, only my own imagination._

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That final school year of St Trinian's flew by faster than Annabelle Fritton, Head Girl of the most ungovernable, uncouth band of youths England had ever seen, could have ever imagined. All around her, the end-of-term party raged on in true St Trinian's fashion; the school band took centre-stage, belting out the ever-famous school anthem for the sixth time that night, (though the words were noticeably more slurred than the first time around) hooked up to the powerful amplifiers the geeks had ordered specially for this occasion. She found she couldn't help but smile at the familiar faces all around her, faces that had become family to her over the past two years. Andrea, Polly, Celia, Chelsea, Taylor… Even Roxy had chosen to stick around longer than she had intended to. Surprisingly, she also spotted Ms Dickinson downing a vodka shot. It was odd how, she mused, in such a short space of time, St Trinian's could completely change one's outlook on life. She, too, had once been an outcast, a Cheltenham Lady who was taught to play by the rules.

Since she had been deposited in this school by her cheapskate father, she felt like a different person. Maybe she was? Or was she still the boring, stuck-up Fritton deep down? _No, of course not._ There's no way any trace of her old lifestyle could have survived the halls of St Trinian's. As if to prove a point, she dutifully accepted a glass of…well, something alcoholic from Matron's tray as she tottered past, trying to stay upright on a pair of ridiculous heels.

The result of Matron's new concoction had been countless empty glasses and bottles littering the dance floor, and the bodies of the pupils (ranging from the more-than-tipsy to the downright incomprehensible) littered among those. They partied all night, they drank until they were so pissed they forgot what the party was thrown for, woke up the next day and, after a hangover that thoroughly resisted any form of school work, were ready to do it all again. Such behaviour would have been frowned upon- no, utterly unacceptable- at a school like Cheltenham Ladies College. Here? It was just another day.

However, despite the alcohol in her system and the electric atmosphere (Which had, at some point in the night, become dangerously true as the First Years discovered the Geek's Van De Graaff Generator, finding it hilarious to give each other electric shocks that made their pigtails stand on end, until Ms Dickinson had insisted on confiscating it, giving herself multiple shocks in the process) Annabelle found it hard to involve herself in the party at all. At first she had a duty, as everyone expected the Head Girl to lead the chant. Now, on the eighth run-through, most had forgotten the words anyway and were making it up as they went along. It weighed heavy on her heart to know that although most of the girls would be back in September for another year of mayhem, she would be among the few who would not. Her school years were over and it was time to face the real world head-on… Was she even ready for that? She had only just settled here, and now she was expected to make a change again? Most ex-St Trinian's, after graduation, had no problem sorting themselves out for the future. They had, after all, acquired a dash of character that most normal kids lost through hours of revision and lecturing. However, this normally meant they would either turn to the extremes: fame, crime, or marry a rich London bloke who could support their lack of education- all depending on the character. Very few got normal, realistic jobs and lived a normal, realistic life; normal and realistic wasn't exactly their way of doing things. Even though Annabelle was a St Trinian through-and-through, (and damned proud of it, too, and would take a hockey stick to whoever said otherwise) she had still been brought up a Cheltenham Lady, and the aspirations and ambitions forced upon her then still rang true in her head.

As a child she had always wanted to be a vet- she had found the thought of helping little animals very compelling. Her Biology results, however, had been a disaster; Chelsea, Taylor and herself had found it much more amusing to throw the rock samples at the back of Andrea's head, or play golf with the leg of the life-sized skeleton model. She had a strong feeling that neither Chelsea nor Taylor cared much that they failed their exam. In fact, no-one in the room would care much if they failed, (except the Geeks, but they passed with flying colours, anyway. Perhaps not completely legitimately, but that was of little importance) but Annabelle suddenly felt like she had wasted a dream, and wished she could go back, be more serious, study harder. _Oh god, Belle, you're being that boring old sod again. You're not supposed to care about things like that. That's what sets you apart from people like Verity Thwaites. _She sighed, and, feeling confused, distraught and able to find no comfort in her drunken classmates, she decided wistfully to retire to her room for a while and clear her head.

Being Head Girl, Annabelle was no longer required to sleep in the dorms with the rest of the school's pupils. Instead she was given the privilege of her own room, a room that all the Head Girl's had used since the very first one had graced the halls. Flouncing down on the grand double bed, (it had often crossed her mind why the Head Girl would need a double bed, but was later assured that she really didn't want to know) she couldn't help but think about all the generations of girls who had slept here, and would sleep here in the future. She had personally helped Miss Fritton, headmistress- and conveniently her own aunt- pick out a girl who was perfect for the job next year, a level-headed, well respected girl; everything Annabelle wished she was when she took up the responsibility last year.

She had to admit, she didn't know much about the past Head Girls of St Trinian's. She had, though only on the rare occasion, met up with the Head Girl of two years back, J.J. French, a legend in the world of fashion and the walking encyclopaedia on public relations. Annabelle could almost see the cosy little room decked out like the boudoir of the Posh Totties, with the tall, blonde girl tucked up in bed, making deals with various clothing lines and magazines through an expensive mobile phone, and smiled. J.J was unusual in the respect that she was quite obviously part of the Posh Totty clique; Peaches, Chloe and Chelsea still have a framed picture of her in their corner of the dorm. Most Head Girls were natural individuals, which prevented bias between the groups, strong, confident leaders who could see anything for any point of view. The grin on her face faded as her mind wandered over to the one person who fit this ideal image perfectly, the Head Girl she knew best-yet least- of all, her friend and mentor, a woman far less easy to predict, slot into a social group or even find the whereabouts of. The illusive, mysterious, beautiful Kelly Jones.

Kelly was perhaps the most worshipped Head Girl of all time; at least, that's what Annabelle hears the teachers say. She had been the first St Trinian Annabelle had properly met, the girl who had put her through her paces- quite literally, making her run naked through the corridors of the school late on her first night. But Annabelle couldn't have a grudge against Kelly. No-one could have a grudge against Kelly. You did what she said, there was no other alternative. She was frustrating, cruel and teasing- but in a charming sort of way.

Over time, however, Annabelle had won her trust. She's still not sure how she did it, but she knew it was a trust not easily gained by any living creature. Her friendship with Kelly had left many of classmates envious, prodding her for information or gossip on their mysterious leader. She hated to disappoint, but she could only answer truthfully: She knew nothing. Kelly was not one for wearing her emotions on her sleeve, or anywhere else, for that matter. The only things glaringly apparent about her were her adoration for her school and the people in it, and her striking, edgy beauty that she used to the best of her advantage. With the way she would sashay over to Flash, pursing her crimson-red lips and battering long, dark lashes, Annabelle could hardly say she could blame him for being a stuttering prat in her presence… Even she found herself flushing under Kelly's hot gaze on multiple occasions. Whilst she disagreed with the meaningless flirting for the sake of business, she had still followed Kelly around, trying to discover anything that gave her an insight into her mind, and running the continuous barrage of tasks Kelly set her, partly out of fear, partly out of respect, and partly out of something that told her that if she did what Kelly wanted, Kelly would be pleased with her. And that, somehow, was good.

Then, she was gone.

She had left Annabelle an encouraging letter, her phone number, and her job as Head Girl, shoes Annabelle felt she could never entirely fill. At first she had called Kelly nearly every day, desperate for advice on how to gain respect as the new Head Girl, yet equally desperate just to hear her voice down the phone, and as far as Annabelle was concerned, that meant she hadn't gotten herself into too much trouble and was still within reach, should she need to call upon her skills at some point. However, she got rarely got through to Kelly herself. (The times she did, the ex-Head would have to leave really quickly and abruptly only minutes into the conversation) It scared her, but she tried not to think about it too much and face the problems and difficulties of living up to the legacies J.J. French and Kelly had left behind on her own. Time went on. School without Kelly was never the same, but over time it became easier, especially when her fellow pupils finally started respecting her in a similar light.

"Girlie, can I come in?" A knock at the door snapped her out of her thoughts.

"Oh…yes, come on in." She replied warily, hoping it wasn't Celia trying to sell her mushrooms, or even worse, a drunken Taylor demanding her nail polish, hair tongs or virginity back, none of which Annabelle had taken or would be in time to take. Thankfully, the plump figure of her aunt swung upon the door and stumbled in, eventually parking her impressive behind on the end of the bed.

"Not coming back to the party, dear?" She enquired, the look on her face one of genuine concern "It's your night and you're here instead, moping your socks off."

"Not really up to it, Auntie. Uh, I mean Miss." She corrected herself hastily, knowing the headmistress disliked being addressed as 'Auntie' whilst in school.

"What are you thinking about, then?" Annabelle's face didn't even crease with surprise. Aunt Camilla had always been able to read her like a book, ever since the moment she walked into her office for the first time. So of course, she had to answer truthfully.

"The future. And… and Kelly, I suppose."

"You're planning a future with Kelly?" Miss Fritton quirked an eyebrow, but her toothy smile told Annabelle she was only being teased. She gave a sheepish grin back,

"No, no. I was just thinking about what I was going to do with my future… What Kelly would have done in my position…?"

"Oh, gosh, you're not worried about making her proud again, are you? You realise you've done as much as you can for this school, and every-"

"No, Miss, it's not that at all. I just ended up thinking about Kelly and… well; you know what she does now."

"Hmm, yah…" Miss Fritton mused, "Although I'm very proud of my Kelly for her, uh, 'success', I don't suggest you follow the same career path." She advised, picking her words carefully. Apart from Annabelle, Miss Fritton was the only St Trinian who knew, all too well, what Kelly now did for a living.

"I know, Miss… I'm sure that life isn't for me. But Kelly is my friend, and it's painful, not knowing where she is or how much danger she's in" Annabelle confessed.

Miss Fritton gave a knowing smile; her niece's adoration for Kelly was glaringly obvious, even to the short-sighted and slightly batty. "Well, I don't know how I can make you feel better about Kelly Jones and her Secret Agent tendencies, but I'm sure she can handle herself… I can, though, help with the issues of your future. For now, at least." Annabelle perked up, relieved to hear her aunt may have a solution,  
"Oh, do tell!" She piped

"Dearie, how would you like a job here, St Trinian's, the home fort? You are, after all, a Fritton- Anarchy runs in your veins"

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_I told you it was going to be slow. Thanks for reading so far!_


	2. Fitting In

Working at St Trinian's was like a dream come true.

Annabelle had eagerly come back to the school in September, knowing that surviving St Trinian's as a pupil for the last two years made her more than qualified to work for her Aunt. Miss Fritton had thought long and hard about what job to give her, seeing as she was still starting out and perhaps not ready, or the right sort of person, to have a class of her own. She decided eventually to place her as a simple teaching assistant to Ms Dickinson, as it was her Annabelle had got along with best in her years at the school. She knew Annabelle herself had been hoping for a place in P.E, more specifically, the hockey team coach, but Miss Cleaver could get… well, a bit up herself, with her being in the war and everything. So it wasn't surprising when Annabelle complained a little, claiming that no-one took Ms Dickinson seriously and she would never learn anything about teaching at St Trinian's, feeling like a newbie all over again. However, her presence in the room forced the class to fall silent in an instant, after all, she was once Head Girl, and Head Girls were to be respected beyond doubt- where teachers were not (obviously).

Ms Dickinson herself was delighted that she could pass on her knowledge _and_ teach a decent lesson without her glasses being stolen, or having cold water dumped over her; surprisingly, she also made for a fantastic mentor, explaining wistfully that all respect she had earned in the school so far would soon be meaningless when she was recognised as a teacher instead of 'Annabelle Fritton, Head Girl' (she had been practising saying that in the same sultry tone Kelly had used on her when she first arrived. Somehow it never sounded the same) and she would have to get used to being a lower authority figure than even the First Years. Of course, Annabelle was adamant that would never happen, but she listened nonetheless, nodding as Ms Dickinson told her who to suspect when all the test papers 'mysteriously' went missing, or how to spot the suspicious giggling before getting pranked.

The staff room was also something new. She had only seen inside the room through the form of recording equipment, as pupils were strictly forbidden. Despite everything, the pupils accepted and respected this, after all, why would they want to hang around with the teachers? It had been an exciting prospect at first, sure, but Annabelle quickly found herself uneasy sitting among the other teachers, and usually just stood awkwardly in Miss Fritton's shadow, nodding along with the conversation and refusing any offer of a quick fag. She may have turned into a St Trinian, but that didn't mean she had to smoke. The other teachers shook their heads and whispered to each other that she was still a kid, leaving Annabelle feeling rather ostracized.

Instead, she made it her personal duty to check upon the wellbeing of the pupils during lunch and break hours, especially that of the new Head Girl, Roxy. The rockstar had vigorously taken up the job as Annabelle knew she would, not only was Roxy the sort of strong individual they were looking for, but being the Head Girl of St Trinian's apparently did wonders for her rock-chick image. Annabelle had always wished that Kelly had been there to guide her, so felt proud that she was sticking around to help Roxy as she was starting out. At first, she had been grateful for her constant support and help, but after two months, she found herself politely asking if Annabelle could perhaps back off a little, reminding her that she wasn't Head Girl anymore and she was sort of stealing her thunder, preventing her from getting the respect she needed,

"You're staff now, you have to accept your days of ruling the roost is over and it's time to pass the baton onto someone else"

Annabelle was a little put out by this, but could see where she was coming from; after all, Roxy needed time to build her own legacy and could never do that when Annabelle still acted like she was in control. Still, the two remained firm friends and often spent long nights drinking, laughing and gossiping in her old room.

Winter came to Britain, and the countdown to Christmas had already started. The school was filled with a seasonal buzz, which heightened even further when the First Years spotted Geoffrey Thwaites dragging an impressive Christmas tree in through the foyer, whilst Miss Camilla tutted and berated him for being so slow, for being such a lousy excuse for a male, and a torrent of other insults-all out of love, of course. (Two days later that 'buzz' was killed after the Flammables set the tree alight after subtly depositing a smoking cigarette in the plant pot when they saw Annabelle stride by, causing the tree to burn and the Ecos to cry out in anguish. Of course, this meant Geoffrey had to repeat the entire process and get another tree, but he secretly enjoyed being the saviour) Watching her former classmates decorating the tree that morning, Annabelle couldn't help but smile as Bianca, perhaps the toughest of the chavs, hoisted a tiny First Year onto her shoulders. The younger girl giggled with delight as she placed her angel, conveniently pink, with a drooping halo and a tiny hockey stick in her hands, on the very top of tree, causing cheers to break out from all those who were watching. The jolly, festive cheer seemed to blur the boundaries of the social groups to a point where everyone could get along evenly without making judgements because of cliques and groups. _Well, almost everyone… _Annabelle winced slightly as one of the Emos lashed out at one of the younger chavs for trying to put her bright, gold decoration on the same branch as her coffin ornament. _Some things just never change. _

Then, the overhead clouds had decided to grace England with the rarity that was snow. Everyone whooped in delight and hurried to put on their warm clothes and dash outside, commencing in the snowball war to end all snowball wars breaking out on the school grounds. Screams and shouts exploded from the joyful scene as even the geeks left their laptops to help the Posh Totties fend off and army of well-armed Ecos. Annabelle wandered outside, wrapped her arms around herself and gave Miss Fritton a sideways glance

"I take it lessons are cancelled?"

Miss Fritton's reply was lobbing a snowball straight into Annabelle's face, causing her to squeal in surprise. Shivering, she wiped the snow from her eyes to look at her rather guilty Aunt,

"Oh, whoopsie, I didn't know my aim was still that good" She apologized, knowing what she had started. Annabelle stuck her tongue out and bent down to scoop up a handful of snow, knowing the answer to her question was yes. Hours were lost in the depths of the snow as the snowball fight finally came to an end with no absolute winner, and they instead drifted apart to build snowmen, make snow-angels or simply watch the tranquil scene through snowflake-laden lashes.

Later that evening, with nothing to do after finishing marking the sixth form homework-after all, only five had actually been turned in-Annabelle found herself alone. The snow had kept falling all day, until the school was comfortably surrounded by eight inches of the stuff. Miss Fritton had deemed it too unsafe to attempt to take Annabelle home, (after being partially disowned by her father, Annabelle had nowhere to stay, and Miss Fritton was all too happy to offer her a place in her own house, claiming that the spare room was getting rather lonely) instead showing her to a corridor of small, unused bedrooms that provided emergency sleeping space for staff who found they couldn't get home, for whatever reason. She contemplated going back there for the night, but the rooms were cold and had an old, lonely feel to them, so she opted instead to take armfuls of left-over decorations, tinsel and lights to Ms Dickinson's classroom with the intention of sprucing it up a little. She smiled at her own desk, which was tucked away in the corner of the room, noting how messy it was and making a mental note to do something about it; Ms Dickinson's desk was always spotless. Nevertheless, she still dumped her handbag down on the wooden surface, the contents spilling out carelessly. _No matter_, Annabelle thought to herself, _I'll do something about it later._

She set about decorating the rather dingy, plain classroom, talking absently to herself as she pinned up a long string of shiny gold tinsel around the blackboard.

"There we are, that's better, isn't it? Always so plain and boring, this room, it needs to be flashier and more out-there…" She was halfway through tying big red ribbons around the framed photos on the walls, when a noise buzzed in her ears. Finding it irritating, she spun on her heels and tried to pinpoint its location. She saw, with some surprise, that it was her mobile phone, vibrating away on her desk, the empty sound resonating around the classroom. _Odd,_ she tapped her lip thoughtfully; _everyone who would call me is in this very same building. _She grabbed it from the desk and brought it up to her face to read the caller display. Her finger hesitated over the 'accept call' button as she stared in disbelief at the single word that was coming up on her screen. Snapping out of the initial shock, she pressed down hard on the button, clenched her teeth and brought the phone up to her ear.

"Hello? Annabelle? Is that you?"

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_Hmm, I wonder? Anyway, thanks again!_


	3. Long Shot

_A/N: Hopefully, it'll get a bit more interesting now :P This chapter's pretty short, sorry about that._

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Annabelle took a deep breath before she replied,

"Daddy…?"

"Ah, yes, Merry Christmas, darling" Her father, Carnaby Fritton, greeted in his usual monotonous tone.

"What is it you want, Daddy?" She asked, feeling suspicious. After the whole ordeal with the Vermeer heist, which included selling her own father a fake Vermeer for half a million quid, her father had point-blanked refused to speak to her; she wasn't complaining about that, either.

"Are you still working at that god-awful school?" He asked, never failing to get straight to the point at hand.

"Yes, why? Is that a problem?" She retorted tartly, sitting down at her desk and crossing one leg elegantly over the other.

"Look, darling, I can't sit back and watch you work at that confounded place and go home with a meagre 'average' salary. I'm going to make you an offer. Being big in the art world, I can get you into an art college, no questions asked… There's plenty of money to be made in this business, and, dare I say it, your 'backhanded' techniques you learnt at that school may well come in handy. You managed to flog an expert a fake painting for half a million in a day." There was no denying the undertone of bitterness in his voice.

"No thank you, Daddy. I'm not interested in your stupid counterfeit paintings and shady black market deals. You just want me to bring in enough money to get you a decent pension!"

"Honestly, Annabelle, sometimes I wonder…"

"If I'm even yours?"

Carnaby was silent for a moment, and then spoke on in a shaky voice, "Wh-Wha… How did you…?"

"Look, there's no point trying to manipulate me anymore, Daddy, I'm not a child and I'm happy where I am!" With that, she cut the conversation with a quick tap to the 'end call' button, slammed the phone down on the desk and cradled her head in her hands.

Her father had always been the biggest role model in her life, until he brought her to St Trinian's. She was always a Daddy's girl, and not ashamed of it, either; until she overheard a conversation between him and her aunt, revealing what he really thought of her. Finding out it was all a façade had been one of the toughest revelations Annabelle had to see through.

_Bzzzzt. Bzzzzt._

Annabelle turned her watery glare on her phone which was, yet again, heralding an incoming call. Cursing under her breath, she picked it up and answered it again,

"And harassing me will not work, Daddy!"

"…Woah. Hold on, Annabelle, calm down"

Despite the fact she was seething with anger and almost blind with rage, her mind pestered her relentlessly, trying to tell her that was not her father's voice on the other end of the phone. She tore the device away from her ear and glanced at the caller display. This time, her eyes widened even further than they had when it had read 'Daddy'.

On the screen, in a striking red font, was the single name, 'Kelly'

Forcing it back to her ear, she stuttered, "K-Kelly? I'm s-sorry; I thought you were… someone else." She choked, trying not to well up and sound like an idiot.

"I figured" Came the reply, "So, how's life after St Trinian's treating my favourite new girl?" She asked, and Annabelle could almost see the smile playing on her bright red lips.

"Ah, St Trinian's never ended. I work here now"

Kelly chuckled softly, "Oh dear, joined the ranks of the teachers, have we? Kids been giving you a hard time?"  
"Not really, everyone still sees me as the coolest Head Girl ever. Well, after you, of course" She grinned, wiping the drying tear-droplets for her lashes.

"Speaking of which, who's the new Head Girl, anyway?"

"Roxy"

"Good choice"

It hadn't really occurred to Annabelle for a while, but she realised in that moment how much she missed having a pointless gossip with her old mentor. "It really has been a while, Kelly. What's the deal, anyway? Why are you calling all of a sudden?"

"Just needed a catch-up, I suppose. It might be a long time till I see you again"

_It's already been a long time since I've seen you! _She thought bitterly, "How come?"

"I've been allowed to take a holiday for the first time since… Well, the first time" Kelly laughed, "I'm thinking about seeing the world outside of Europe. Well, not from the underground or in the back of a criminal's truck, anyway. You know what international calls cost…"

Way to put her worried heart at rest. "Where are you now?"

"Moscow"

"Moscow, Russia?" Annabelle gawped

"Jeez, you must have passed Geography with flying colours."

There was a silence while Annabelle's mind raced. She honestly didn't think that, after being able to talk to Kelly for the first time since she had left her beloved school, she would be able to cope with not seeing or hearing from her for another year or so. She didn't exactly know why, but her heart was pounding away in her chest. She didn't exactly know where the next thing she said came from, either.

"Come to England, Kelly."

"…What?"

Annabelle closed her eyes, "Come back home."

There was a long, awkward silence. Then Kelly broke it, "I don't know, Annabelle. I don't know when I'll get another chance to travel a bit…"

Annabelle knew she was being selfish, but now she couldn't stop herself, "Not travelling? You're in bloody Moscow, Kelly! I don't know when I'll get a chance to see you again! I could be anywhere when you next get a break, but isn't it convenient I'm still at the school? Auntie wouldn't mind… The sixth formers still remember and miss you. And the teachers. And me. Especially me." _Oh dear, now I'm begging and sound like a desperate prat._

"Well… When you put it like that…" Kelly bit her bottom lip as she weighed up Annabelle's speech, as Annabelle wondered furiously if she'd said too much, not that she knew what it meant if she had said too much, "Alright. When the snow is all cleared up I'll… I'll catch a plane over and book a hotel near the school"

Annabelle mentally punched the air in delight, "Oh, thankyou, thankyou, Kelly!"

"I'm only doing it because you begged so hard. Reminds me a little of Flash. Only cuter and with less facial hair- at least I hope so. I'll see you soon, then!" And on that note, she hung up.

Annabelle grinned widely, still in a sort of trance. She couldn't believe in perhaps just a few days she would be able to see her old partner-in-crime again. Wait, what had she said before she hung up? She was like Flash?

Oh, _bugger._ She really had sounded too desperate.

At the same time, in Russia, a dark-haired, red-lipsticked girl shoved her phone in the pocket of her leather jacket and smiled to herself.

"I guess I'm going to England, then"

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_As always, thanks!_


	4. Reunion

_I don't like this chapter so much, it was difficult to write. Oh well. Enjoy._

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Five days later, Annabelle was stood at Heathrow airport, a thick coat drawn around her figure, shivering slightly from the cold outside and the anticipation inside. The snow had stopped falling days ago, but the temperature still sat just below zero, making it clear to everyone that winter had well and truly set in, and would not be releasing it's icy grip for a while now. She tapped the toe of her boot against the hard floor of the airport's WH Smith's, eyes flickering between drifting across the pages of the magazine she was holding, and impatiently scanning the screen detailing roughly when each flight would be coming in. Kelly had been in the air for just under four hours, so if there were no delays the plane would land within ten minutes. Laying a gloved hand across her stomach, she willed the butterflies swarming there to settle down. She was annoyingly aware of how nervous she was, but unable to think of a good reason why she should be. Driving up to the school for her first day was a good reason to be nervous. So was the night before the Vermeer heist, or her first day as Head Girl. Greeting an old friend was not, even if that friend _was_ Kelly Jones.

"Excuse me…?" A nervous voice at her shoulder tore her attention away from the flight schedule. A slight, pale-looking woman stood behind her, knitting her fingers together anxiously.

"Yes?"

"Do you think you could, uh… your friends… well…" She raised a hand and pointed out to the entrance to the store. Tania and Tara, who had tagged along for the trip, were having a full-blown hockey stick fight, clattering the wooden, makeshift weapons together with fierce cries of "En Garde!" People dodged and ducked to avoid their wildly flailing limbs, giving both them and Annabelle accusing glares. Sighing, she strutted over to them and calmly walked between the two poised sticks, throwing them daring looks. The twins glanced at eachother, then dropped their 'weapons' down to their sides, "Sorry, Annabelle." They apologized in unison "We were just having some fun."

Annabelle had to try and hide her smile from the adorable sisters. They had not changed much from their First Year days, although they had grown considerably, and long, curled locks replaced their infantile plaits, with Tara slowly emerging as the more dominant of the two. The other students noted how truly intimidating the thought of First Years in much bigger bodies was, but although the Twins most certainly ruled the dorm- surpassed in authority only by Roxy- Annabelle knew they were both huge softies at heart. They had remained her friends over the years and were two of the few students who she permitted to call her informally around the school, instead of the 'Miss Annabelle' she was most frequently called (as to not be confused with Miss Fritton). The duo had jumped at the chance to get out of the school and see Kelly again; they had been among her most avid admirers when she was Head Girl.

"It's ok, girls, I just don't want to get thrown out before Kelly gets here" She smiled, "Try and keep the mayhem to a low for a while"

They pouted and nodded, and then Tania spoke up, "Say, Annabelle?"

"Hmm?"

"When Kelly gets here…. how are we supposed to see her?" She asked, eyes wide.

"Well, Tania, we use our eyes and look over at that door over-" She cut off as she turned to look at the arrivals door, and her jaw dropped. "…Buggeration"

During her intervention in the Twin's 'game', a flight had apparently come in and now people were swarming everywhere, luggage dragging along behind them, crashing into other people as they went, twisting and turning like it was some giant obstacle course.

Tania grabbed hold or Tara's arm, "Dear lord, I've never seen so many rushing, annoyed people in one place!"

"Well, of course, you don't look behind you when people are chasing you for stealing things, do you?" Tara mused sarcastically.

"Is this Kelly's flight?" Annabelle glanced around urgently. She pulled a tall gentleman in a business suit to a stop roughly, "Excuse me, did you fly in from Moscow?"

"Uh, yes" He growled, "Watch the suit, will you?" He stalked off and Annabelle threw his back an 'I don't care, I'm a St Trinian' sort of look. Turning to the twins, she said, "Go see if you can find her!" They nodded in perfect unison and took off into the crowds, calling out Kelly's name over the ruckus.

Left alone, Annabelle tried desperately to pick out Kelly's distinctive looks among the throngs of people around her. Once or twice she thought she saw a black bob or a flash of lipstick, but after straining her eyes harder it had turned out to be someone else. She was beginning to get frustrated, wondering if the line of arrivals would ever end, when she felt arms slip around her waist and pull her backwards, and soft words in her ear,

"Hello again, stranger"

It was the tone of voice that she would recognise anywhere. Giving a laugh of joy, she turned slowly on her heels until she came face-to-face, for the first time in over a year, with the one person she missed so desperately from her life.

"It's you… Kelly" She grinned, pulling the older girl into an embrace.

"Last time I checked," Kelly smiled, and then took a step back, "Look at you, all grown up! If someone had told me that posh little new girl was going to turn out like this, I _may_ not have tormented you so much."

Annabelle looked over her old friend with brown eyes; Kelly's hair was now slightly longer and a little unkempt, (in a terribly sexy way) falling just above her shoulders. Her lipstick was still unerringly in place on her full lips, her lashes and eyes still dark and full of mystery. She wore a smart black coat and, despite the weather, a short black denim skirt with black leggings underneath. Annabelle tried to cover up the blush creeping over her face by shaking her curls over her face, "And then I wouldn't have embarrassed myself so much, running around naked for your amusement"

"Tradition is tradition" She smirked.

"So, what happened when they subjected you to those pranks?" Annabelle questioned, suddenly curious.

"That's a story for another time" Kelly laughed, "When there are less people around!"

After being reunited with the Twins, who had greeted Kelly with huge gusto, almost knocking the well-built spy off her feet, the group had left the airport, gossiping and laughing all the way to the car park. Annabelle fished in her pocket for her car keys and halted beside a sleek, black jaguar. With a swift press of the button on the keys, she unlocked it and opened the boot, motioning to Kelly. The twins excitedly clamoured into the back seats while she helped Kelly load her surprisingly small amount of luggage, then made her way to the driver's seat. Kelly ran her fingers down the side of the car, eyebrows raised,

"Nice ride!" She purred. Annabelle tilted her head and gave the Twins a sly wink; she was not stupid enough to pick Kelly up in her pathetic, 'first-time-buyer' Suzuki swift, and had instead pleaded with Geoffrey to let her borrow his posh car using the usual methods (The begging, the puppy dog eyes, the blackmail…) Feeling confident with the compliment, she turned the key in the ignition,

"Ready for your big reunion?"

The cheers that had rung out when Kelly had walked into the main hall were tremendous. Teachers and pupils alike ran over to greet their former leader, smiling and hugging and tugging at her clothes, asking excited questions and just generally enjoying being in the company of an old friend. Annabelle couldn't help but notice, however, how the younger years, First Years in particular, hung back nervously, with confusion plastered over their features, and it suddenly occurred to Annabelle that the legacy that Kelly had weaved was gradually being lost with the generations. It was bound to happen; after all, there were probably amazing former students she would never know about. But somewhere in her stomach she felt a pang at the thought of Kelly being forgotten to the girls of St Trinian's. She smiled softly and brought her fingers to her lips, and blew out a sharp, piercing whistle. The girls stopped their chatter and turned to look at her curiously,

"I can see…" She started, "That some of you are a little confused. Let me tell you a story" She gave Kelly a sideways look, seeing her stifling a giggle, "Of a time when a certain St Trinian's girl stole a priceless painting from London"

The girls had crowded around her, listening intently as Annabelle cleared her throat and began to tell the story of the Vermeer heist. Kelly laughed and threw her head back as Annabelle over-dramatised the trek through the sewers, the wire act over the audience of school challenge, and particularly her own victory over the evil overlord Verity Thwaites. The First Years looked at Kelly and, to Annabelle's delight, even her, with a newfound respect, eyes wide with awe,

"And that's why, girls, St Trinian's is the best comp in Britain!" Kelly finished, raising a fist into the air.

"I may disagree…" Geoffrey sighed, "But I doubt anyone here would give a damn." Everyone burst into joyous laughter, and the group spent the rest of the evening sharing stories of dangerous heists of the past, risky pranks pulled by individuals, and ideas for future mayhem. Annabelle sat against Kelly's side, half-listening to Miss Fritton recount a tale her great-aunt had passed down to her of a war between the sixth formers and the younger years as they bet on different horses in a famous race in a bid to save the school from debt. The cosy warmth made her feel sleepy, but she sourly resisted the temptation to snuggle against Kelly, telling herself that she was just tired and probably would've wanted to lean against Verity, had she been sitting there. And… Wasn't that a repulsive thought? No, in fact, she didn't want to come within a mile of Verity ever again unless she was well armed… and had Kelly somewhere nearby…

Matron gave a stretch, spilling the last drop of her cocktail on the floor, "Time to get the young 'uns off to bed, 'Milla" She whispered softly, nodding to the younger girls who snoozed on the hall floor.

"All of them" Kelly spoke gently, brushing Annabelle's hair off her sleeping face and stifling a yawn. The younger girl had succumbed to slumber barely ten minutes ago, crashing out against Kelly's shoulder.

"That includes you, Kelly." Camilla smiled kindly, "Travelling all day, you should catch up on sleep."

"Sleep?" Kelly tilted her head to the side in mock confusion, "Oh, I remember sleep. I should really try that again."

"Do you need a lift to your hotel?"

"I was going to call a Taxi…"  
"Oh, nonsense, no Taxi will come anywhere near this place. Past experiences, you know."

A smile, "Thank you, Miss Fritton."

"Help me carry Anna-bella to the car, dearie? I'm afraid my poor old back's not quite up to it" She groaned, pulling herself upright.

"We could just wake her" Kelly smiled, and the aging headmistress laughed quietly,

"Ah yes, it's hard not to think of her of anything but a child, sometimes. I suppose she'd be quite offended by that. Well, in your own time, dear. I'll start the engine up."

Kelly smiled her thanks once more, and then tapped Annabelle's cheek softly with her fingertips, "Annabelle… Time to go home…" She whispered softly. Annabelle shifted slightly in her sleep and smiled, but remained within its clutches.

"Ah, to hell with this." Kelly sighed, knowing she couldn't make herself wake her when she looked so content. She pulled Annabelle towards her, stood up slowly and made her way towards the foyer, carrying the proud, but now seemingly vulnerable, 19-year-old in her arms, thinking what a funny sight they made. As she made her way outside, Miss Fritton looked over questionably,

"She wouldn't wake up, the lazy teacher" Kelly answered her wordless question with a lie, grinning sheepishly.

All the while, Annabelle slept on, blissfully unaware.

* * *

_Thankyou so much everyone for your reviews! _

_I'd also like to specially thank Cardboards for being a 'dearie' and beta'ing this story for me :D It helped a lot, so thanks a bunch!_


	5. Test

"Annabelle?"

Annabelle sat at her desk in the English classroom, absent-mindedly doodling on the corner of a report she was supposed to be checking over. Her dark, decorated eyes rose to meet Miss Dickinson's bespectacled ones lazily; the end of school for Christmas was looming and she was deathly bored knowing she would have to wait until end of school hours to see Kelly, leaving her with very little motivation for her work.

"Yes, Miss?"

"Could I ask a favour? My friend needs to be picked up from the train station. I said I would, but I have a lesson with the Year Eights next… I was wondering if you could possibly fill in for me, just this once"

Annabelle's mind slowly processed the information, "Fill in… for a lesson? Miss, I'm not sure if I'm good enough for that…"

"Don't be silly, Annabelle. This is the year that grew up adoring you, remember? I'm sure they'll behave, especially for you." The older teacher patted her shoulder.

"You're right," Annabelle gave a lengthy stretch and pulled herself upright, trying not to show that her worries were not calmed, "Thankyou, miss."

"Just don't give in to their tricks and name-calling, and you'll be fine" She paused momentarily, "Oh, but you already know that, of course. They'll be carrying on from their last lesson; the books should be in the supply closet" She gave a wry smile, "I'm sure you'll be a natural"

-------

"…Ok, class. Settle down"

Standing at the front of a class of twenty-something (they were moving far too fast to count) young St Trinian's girls who were only just approaching womanhood without the presence of Miss Dickinson was, to put it bluntly, absolutely terrifying. Of course, to let them know that would be suicide, so Annabelle gulped and put on a brave face. Hopefully, her legacy would shine through and she would be able to get through the next hour and make a decent job of it. _Just pretend you're still Head Girl; all the tricks worked back then._

She brought her fingers to her lips, hesitated for a moment, then let loose a shrill whistle that caused the entire room to come grinding to a halt,

"I said, settle down" She repeated, tapping a foot. The girls scurried to their chairs, with looks of fear, bemusement and respect. She gave the class a quick headcount, then asked "Where's Tabitha?" The girls threw eachother confused looks, as if they had never noticed their classmate was missing. Annabelle sighed; fine, one absent student was actually a godsend, especially for an English lesson. Still, she would have liked the entire class to be present for her debut. She picked up the pile of books from her desk and distributed them among the class, ignoring the groans of dismay and resent. This particular book had been her favourite in her youth, sat a quiet classroom of Cheltenham Ladies College, flipping through the pages and dreaming of something she was sure was reserved only for the popular girls. She had just made her way back to the front of the classroom and was about to bark out some more orders, when she heard the door creak nosily. She rolled her eyes in annoyance,

"Tabitha, you're late, as usual!" The younger girl slumped into her chair and pouted,

"But Miss Annabelle, I really did make an effort to get here on time! It's just; I was coming back from the Hockey Pitch…"

Annabelle was about to cut into her excuse with a retort when she noticed movement in the doorway from the corner of her eye and turned her head fully.

The curvy form of Kelly Jones was leaning against the doorframe, tongue running across her top lip in her trademark way, the corners upturned into a sly smile. Annabelle's mouth moved, but no noise came out. Tabitha's long-winded excuse fell on deaf ears for a moment, before Kelly gave her a wink and snapped her painfully back to reality,

"…So, I told Miss Kelly I'd show her to the classroom" Tabitha finished proudly.

"..Kelly, what are you doing here?" She groaned, rubbing her forehead.

"I hate to brag, Fritton" Kelly replied, slowly and deliberately, "But I'm the very best at keeping teachers in their place." _Fritton. _It had been so long since Kelly had referred to her by her surname; when she had earned the respect of the school, she had also earned Kelly's friendship, and the formalities between that had loosened. It made her feel so much smaller, but she tried not to visibly shrink backwards.

"Kelly…" As much as she loved having her around, her presence would make her even more conscious of herself. It was her first lesson and she _had_ to make a good impression; she could do without any form of distraction.

"Oh, come off it, Annabelle. You won't even know I'm here" With that, she strutted into the class and lowered herself into a chair at the back of a room, crossed one leg over the other, picked up the book and pretended to become exceedingly engrossed in it, all the time a smile still playing on her face. She glanced upwards, eyes shining mischievously, "And for God's sake, stop staring at me like that"

The class chuckled and Annabelle tore her eyes away. She knew at this point there was no shifting her; even without her provocative acting. There was nothing that could be done when Kelly was intent on something. If Kelly had wanted her to, she knew she would have no choice but to dance the Funky Chicken in front of the entire dorm in a bathrobe (although Annabelle never told her this; she was better off not putting ideas into her mind) Sighing, she brought the book up to her face and took a quick look at the next extract,

"Fine. Everyone turn the last page we were working off. I need a volunteer to read out this next part, please."

Silence. Annabelle frowned, "Oh, come on, this is one of the most famous moments in literature!" When her plea was met with blank looks, she gave up and was about to assign the role to any random member of the class- eyes hanging over the unpunctual Tabitha- when Kelly lifted her hand and cleared her throat, looking dangerously serious,

"Pick me… Miss"

"Uh, preferably someone who is actually a pupil of the class?" Annabelle begged.

"Aw, come on, Miss Annabelle! Let Kelly have a go!" Yelled a girl from the front row, relieved that someone else was actually offering to do the hard work of reading. Her cry was taken up by the rest of the class, who cheered in agreement. Seeing that she was fighting a loosing battle, Annabelle relented fearfully,

"Ok. Kelly, from line 67, please"

Smiling at her easy victory, Kelly rose and began to read the famous words in an over exaggerated, sultry voice,

"She speaks!  
O, speak again, bright angel, for thou art  
As glorious to this night, being over my head  
As is a winged Messenger of Heaven  
Unto the white upturned wondering eyes  
Of Mortals, that fall back to gaze on him,  
When he bestrides the lazy, puffing clouds  
And sails upon the bosom of the air!"

She recited dramatically, taking a step closer to the front of the classroom with each word of emphasis, not taking her eyes off Annabelle's for a moment. By the time she had reached the end, she was standing mere inches away from the teacher, an expectant look on her face. Annabelle hesitated, unsure of how to react. Kelly tapped a foot impatiently, "Why doth thou not answer, Juliet?" She asked, dark eyes still boring into Annabelle, one eyebrow slightly raised in challenge. Annabelle realised what she was asking her to do; she should have seen this coming, of course Kelly would try and make the next hour as uncomfortable and embarrassing for her as possible. The room fell silent with anticipation and awkward waiting. Still Kelly kept her gaze locked on her, silent. Damning the curriculum for choosing _Romeo and Juliet_ as their subject study (and her own play-by-the-rules attitude, for actually_ following_ said curriculum) she began to recite the piece. No way would she lose. Not now.

"O, Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou, Romeo?" She looked down and deadpanned, trying to give no signs of emotion away, "Deny thy father… refuse thy name… Or if thou wilt not, be but sworn… My… L-love…" She awkwardly stumbled over the words, much to the amusement of the class, who snickered and whispered to eachother, "And I'll no longer be a Capulet" finishing breathlessly, she returned her gaze to Kelly, a slight blush on her cheeks. _Challenge accepted. What else do you want to throw at me?_ Kelly grinned and, all too happy to oblige, took a few more steps forward until Annabelle could feel her warm breath on her face. Coming to a jolting realization, the blush on her cheeks darkened rapidly. _Uh, actually, no, no, not in front of the class… _She closed her eyes, failing to make her body protest in any way.

_Thud._

Her eyes flew open. Kelly had thrown her copy of the play carelessly onto the desk to her side. With a slight nod, she turned away from her victim with an air of nonchalance, acting as if nothing had happened. The rest of the class sat in awe as she sauntered out of the classroom, closing the door behind her.

"Urmh… Right…" Annabelle faltered. _What just happened? _Had she won? Or, had Kelly succeeded in making her look like a fool? "Can you all make a start on question 1…?"

-------

The rest of the lesson went surprisingly well, despite the whispers and excited giggles behind her back. She had attempted to ignore them, knowing full well what they were discussing the possibility of; the very thought made her stomach clench. Of course not, right? They were just children; they didn't know what they were talking about, right? Her reaction, and the amount of respect she held for a woman who had influenced her life so thoroughly were perfectly normal…Right? After the lesson had ended, she had hurried down to the foyer in search of the ex Head Girl. Despite her embarrassment and aching confusion, she felt she needed to ask Kelly what on earth that was all about. She found her gossiping casually with Beverly at the reception desk, giving the occasional laugh at Beverly's wild re-enactments of… something. Part of her hoped they weren't talking about her, yet some part of her secretly hoped they were.

"Kelly!" She called, surprised at how coarse her own voice sounded. Kelly looked up, and Annabelle tried her best to make a stern face at her.

"Oh, hey, Annabelle" She smiled again at Beverly, "I'll see you tomorrow, Bev. Nice to catch up." She stretched and made her way over to Annabelle, "What's wrong? Tough day?" She asked, teasingly.

"Kelly… About earlier…"

"Oh, that? Stop getting so paranoid. That was just a little test to see if you could cope in St. Trinian's as a fully-fledged teacher."

"And…?"

"You passed."

Annabelle tried to suppress her grin of delight, knowing that she should be annoyed and not overjoyed to have pleased her friend, "Just promise you won't do something like that again, ok? You've put me through enough."

"At least you're not naked this time" Kelly pointed out shortly.

"…Good point."

"I should be getting on" She groaned, "It's my holiday, but I still have a bunch of paperwork to fill out. Your aunt tells me there's going to be a Christmas booze-up tomorrow?"

Of course. Tomorrow would be the last day of term before Christmas, "Oh, yeah. I had forgotten about that"

"I'll see you then. You better get me something better to drink than Trinski!" She smiled widely, before giving a wave, which Annabelle shyly returned. She watched, somehow feeling a little lonely, as her old friend pushed open the doors and walked away with her usual confident swagger. Despite everything she had done, Annabelle knew she had forgiven Kelly the instant she had looked at her again. And by the sounds of it, tomorrow was going to be fun. Life was good._  
Oh my GOD, Belle, please stop staring!_  
Oh yeah. Except that. The taunting of her Year Eight class, along with her pounding heart and reddening cheeks, had turned her mind into a torrent of confusion. Annabelle didn't like being confused. She liked knowing exactly what was going on, especially with her own feelings. She would have to talk to someone, she decided. Someone she could confide the happening of the last few days (…Or… was it perhaps the last few years?) in. With a final (and sneaky) glance at Kelly, she spun around and made a beeline for Roxy's room, desperate to shift the weight off her chest.

* * *

_Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet does not belong to me... Obviously...  
Needed to get this chapter over and done with. Urgh. Just one more, and I can get to the part I've been itching to write. Thanks again for reviews, favorites, ect. Love you all!_


	6. Truth and Lies

"Oh, hey there, 'Belle!" Roxy greeted jovially, swinging the door with one hand, "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Annabelle groaned nonsensically and entered the room, noting with slight distaste the posters of rock bands, male celebrities and photographs of Roxy's boyfriend that decorated the walls. Her collection sure had grown since she'd last been in here. Truth is, it had been too long. She had been so absorbed in her work, and other (obvious) things, to visit her friend. She belly flopped onto the bed carelessly and stared into the wall, unsure where to begin.

"…Something up?" The Head girl asked, sitting beside her and picking her guitar up from the bedside, looping the strap around her shoulder.

"…Yes. I need to talk to you about something" She admitted slowly.

"Mm?" Roxy picked a few notes subconsciously, "What?"

"Kelly"

"Really…" One of Roxy's eyebrows shot up, "What seems to be the problem?"

"I dunno, Rox. Earlier in my English lesson…"

"The _Romeo and Juliet_ thing?"

"You know about that?"

"Just try telling the young 'uns to stop talking about it!" She laughed, "Apparently, you went proper red!"

Annabelle made a mental note to give a certain Year Eight class a berating later, "That's exactly what I want to talk to you about. It's turned my thoughts into mush"

"And this is the first time that's happened?" Roxy's other eyebrow raised.  
"…No. It's not. There was… Well, my first day. The day of my makeover. The party after the Heist. The day she arrived back here. And just about every day in-between" Annabelle admitted, lowering her eyes, "It just took today to make me realise."

"It sounds to me" She paused for a moment, "like someone's got a bit of a crush" she smiled, eyes glittering cheekily. Annabelle gave an awkward start,

"On…Kelly? That can't be right, I mean, she's a girl…"

"So?" Roxy patted her shoulder, "It happens, Belle. Besides, I don't think I'm the only person who has had that suspicion"

"Damn" Annabelle cursed, "Who else?"

"Most of the Year Eights. Bianca, Celia, Lucy and Zoe. Probably the Bursar and Geoffrey. Miss Fritton and…"

"Auntie?"

"Yeah, she's gonna be pleased if it's true; Matron will owe her £40."

"They're betting over it?!"

"This is St. Trinian's, Belle. I don't know what else you'd expect!" Roxy chuckled.

Annabelle tapped her lips, thinking it through. This was a new possibility. She wasn't entirely comfortable with it, either; it did, however, make sense. If anything did anymore, that was.

"But do I? Like Kelly?" It still made her stomach flip.

"That's for you to figure out" Roxy gave a sympathetic glance when Annabelle made a face at her, "I can't answer that for you."

"How?"

"You'll just know. Trust me" She rose from the bed, "Now, if you don't mind, I have to rehearse a couple of songs"

"Ok, sure. Thanks, Rox."

"Oh, and Belle. Good luck. You're adorable together!" She grinned widely.

"I wouldn't go that far" Annabelle hesitantly returned the smile, "Seeya!"

She left the room, closing the door with a click behind her. The conversation had made her mind reel. Why did it make so much sense? She heard Roxy's guitar strum from behind the door, then the rock-chick's ropey voice sing out,

"_Annabelle and Kelly, sitting in the tree,  
K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"_

Annabelle hit the door in annoyance, and heard Roxy break into raucous laughter. Shaking her head and hiding her blush from no-one in particular, she stormed off down the hallway to her classroom.

Miles away, in a cramped hotel room, a black-haired girl slouched against the headrest of her bed, stirring a cup of coffee thoughtfully.

-----------

_The last day of school before Christmas,_ Annabelle mused, _it's gone quickly!_

She was sat on the stairs, watching the sixth formers prepare for the party all around her. Roxy was barking orders to a group of girls who teetered back and forth as they tried to slot the heavy pieces of the stage floor into place. The Banned were checking over their equipment, plugging leads into the back of their amps and testing the tuning of their instruments. The chavs were in charge of the decorations on the condition they were not to have any colour bias (particularly in the gold area) and were hanging banners and streamers from the lights. Annabelle nervously fidgeted with the bottle in her hands; she had stayed true to her word and bought Kelly some particularly fancy wine, but was having second thoughts; perhaps she preferred harder drinks? She watched with half-interest as the preparations continued, feeling a little apprehensive. This would be the first time she had seen Kelly since her little revelation. She had to _try_ not to make herself look like an idiot.

What felt like hours later, the school bell rang, echoing down the School's empty halls. Instinctively, Annabelle hopped off the stairs and made her way towards the corner of the room where she could see the stage clearly, just before the reams of children began to pour from the first floor into the large space of the cleared foyer, filling the room with excited chatter and gossip. The staff arrived shortly after, Miss Fritton and Matron bringing the crates of alcohol between them. The Emo of the Banned, Beth, took the mic in her hands and cried,

"Good evening, St. Trinian's!" The crowd screamed in appreciation, and she smiled; a rarity for the depressive girl, "We're gonna kick it off with Up and Away, because frankly, it's our best song and if we sing it later, most of you will be too pissed to care" Even Annabelle chuckled at that, it was nice to see someone typically bad-tempered and pessimistic so upbeat. The drummer counted them in, and then the famous Banned of St. Trinian's burst into song.

"_What's all that noise, coming down?  
Tryin' to kill my buzz, tryin' to spin me around"_

Annabelle tapped her foot to the tune, mouthing the words along with the Banned. They had written this song during her reign as Head Girl, and it brought back a wave of nostalgia. She suddenly felt a sensation near her ear; the sound and vibration of clicking fingers, annoying snapping her concentration from the party. She turned her head to see Kelly, decked out in the full St. Trinian's uniform, smiling like an idiot,

"Don't you think I make a good school girl? Oh wait; I did!" She laughed over the music, "These guys are great, aren't they?" She motioned to the singers on stage, and Annabelle nodded her agreement, not quite able to tear her eyes from Kelly's attire,

"Why on earth are you wearing that?"

"Don't know. Just thought I might" She purred teasingly, pressing herself a little closer to Annabelle, "So, anything decent to drink in this place?"

"Oh!" Annabelle started, "I forgot." She extended her arms shyly, "I picked this up for you."

Kelly took the bottle from Annabelle's hands and ran her eyes over the label, "Bloody hell, Annabelle, this must've cost a bit!"

"Oh, not really…"Annabelle played with the ends of her curls, "I didn't really know what to get… I'm sorry if it's not your taste"

Kelly laughed, "If it's alcohol, it's my taste."

"Good" Annabelle gave a noticeable sigh of relief.

"Seriously though, thankyou. I didn't mean for you to go out and buy me something this posh."

"No problem"

Kelly yanked out the cork, "It almost seems a shame to drink this stuff, let alone straight from the bottle." She brought the neck up to her lips, "Ah well. Cheers!"

"_And I remember when flirting ruled every night  
there was a moment when the world was feather light,  
do you remember those nights we flew through the crowd?  
And baby when nothing in this world could get us down!"_

Seven hours and countless bottles of booze later, the fire of the party started to simmer out. Most of the children had been sent off to the dorms, cheering and singing in drunken voices. The Banned were packing up their kit and Roxy was helping Miss Fritton carry the girls who had simply dropped off to sleep to the sofas.

Annabelle herself had attempted to watch the amount she had drank, fearful of doing something stupid whilst under the influence, and was merely tipsy. Kelly, on the other hand, had gone all-out, and was leaning back against the wall where she and Annabelle sat, laughing like a maniac, trying to tell a story but only getting in two or three words before breaking into laughter again.

"Kel, isn't it about time you went home?" She glanced up at the clock. Two in the morning.

"I guess so." Kelly groaned, giving up on her story and fishing around in her bag for her car keys.

"You're not going to drive, are you?" She gave her friend a cross look, "You're scary enough behind the wheel without alcohol"

"I'm not walking home." Kelly pouted stubbornly. Annabelle sighed. It's funny how alcohol could make one's personality do a complete 180.

"I'm not going to let you." She hissed, forcing the keys out of her hands. A drunken Kelly was the only Kelly she'd ever dare backchat.

"And I doubt your hotel will let you in, looking like that" Miss Fritton was standing over them, eyeing Kelly.

"You're all so meeeeean. Must be a Fritton thing." Kelly crossed her arms, stropping.

"Where is she going to go, Miss?" Annabelle asked.

"Let's take her back to our place, she can stay the night and sort herself out." Miss Fritton motioned to the fully sober Geoffrey, who was sipping orange juice, "Start up the engine, there's a dear."

The car ride was a blast; Kelly, Annabelle and Camilla sat in the back of the car, singing enthusiastically to a song none of them knew which had come on the radio, while Geoffrey groaned and tried to concentrate on the road. After arriving home and literally dragging Kelly up the stairs, Annabelle sat on the floor of her room, with Kelly stretched out on her bed.

"Why _did_ you get so drunk, Kel?"

"I did have a reason" Kelly rubbed her chin, "But I forgot."

"Well, at least you haven't thrown up yet…"

"Are you kidding? I can hold my alcohol like… an alcohol holding thing."

"A barrel?"

"Thassa one!"

"You're going to have one hell of a hangover in the morning" Annabelle grinned, reaching up and poking her in the ribs. Kelly squealed, then looked at her seriously,

"Sooooo? This is supposed to be my va-ca-tion. I can do whatever the like I hell."

Annabelle shook her head, "You're getting your words mixed up."

"That's a sign I should try and sleep it off." She sipped at the glass of water Annabelle had poured for her, "Where do I sleep?"

"Well, that's the only bed I can see, so there." Annabelle nodded at her bed. Kelly shrugged and placed her glass on the bedside table, then pulled the covers over herself.

"Wait. Where are you going to sleep?"

"I don't know. I think I have a sleeping bag somewhere."

"Sillllly Annabelle." Kelly chastised, patting the bed, "You'll sleep up here."

"With you?"

"With me."

"You don't mind?"

"I don't mind."

Annabelle hesitated for a moment, Roxy's words echoing in her head. Sighing, she let temptation get the better of her and clambered into bed next to the older girl, hoping that she would be too drunk and tired to notice her thumping heart. Kelly roped an arm loosely around her waist, eyes fluttering closed. Annabelle's mind swam. She was close enough to smell the drink on Kelly's breath as it steadied, the spy gradually dropping off to sleep. Suddenly, something clicked. This felt oddly right, as if everything she had wanted for the last two and a half years was right besides her. She could have slapped her forehead there and then. No matter how stupid and cheesy it sounded to her, it was true.

She was completely and utterly in love, and there was no denying it anymore.

"…Kel?" She whispered. Kelly opened her eyes slowly,

"Yeah?"

"I… I should tell you something…" Annabelle could barely breathe. She wondered vaguely what she was doing, and whether this was a little rash.

"Do you?"

"Yeah. Kelly, I think…" She looked Kelly in the eye, and remembered how utterly pissed her friend was. There was a hazy look in her big brown eyes, a look of half-consciousness. She sighed; there really was no point yet. After all, Kelly would most likely have no recollection in the morning. "You know, I'll tell you tomorrow."

"Promise?"

A pause, "Promise."

"Mmmkay"

Annabelle let go of the breath she didn't know she was holding, and closed her eyes. Sleeping would be difficult tonight, she decided, and Kelly would probably freak in the morning when she realised they were sharing a bed. Suddenly, her thought-train was interrupted by a force around her waist pulling her across the bed, then a soft, damp fluttering over her lips. Her senses froze, willing herself not to open her eyes as Kelly kissed her gently, not sure whether to respond or pull away. _Do something, Belle! _After dawdling for a few seconds, Annabelle decided to risk it and kiss back, but Kelly pulled away suddenly, leaving her sourly disappointed. Her eyes opened to see her friend looking decidedly asleep on the pillow, her breathing slowed and eyes shut.

_Drunk off her bloody head. _Annabelle sighed inwardly, still shaking from the surprise kiss. She reached out a hand and tucked a few stray strands of hair behind Kelly's ear, then settled down on her pillow, desperate to fall asleep and not dwell on her thoughts too much. _I'll tell her tomorrow…_

After a few minutes, Kelly opened one eye, smiling as she saw Annabelle with her eyes clenched shut, a blush spread over her cheeks. _God, I'm a good actor. Like I'd ever get that pissed. _

* * *

_Yes. I HATE this chapter. Glad I can get on with the next one now, though_

_The song is Up and Away by the Banned of St. Trinians (but you should know that!) and it doesn't belong to me. Duh. Like I can sing.  
_


	7. Bright Eyes

_Pretty short chapter, I'm sorry. I wasn't going to take this approach to this chapter until today so... sorry for ensuing gibberish._

* * *

_Beep-beep. Beep-beep. Beep-beep-beep-beep beeeeeeeeep!_

Brown eyes flickered open lazily, darting around the blurry room in search of the incessant noise droning in her ears. Kelly rolled over on to her stomach and reached a bare arm down the side of the bed, fumbling for the clock she hoped she would find. Her slender fingers and painted nails found the LED alarm clock which had been knocked over at some point last night and, clumsily, pressed down on the 'off' button. The alarm stopped, and the tired girl lifted the clock to her face, the bright blue numbers burning her eyes.

"9 o'clock?" She groaned, dropping it back to the floor with disgust. Now, why on earth would she set her alarm that early? Was there perhaps something she had to do today? _What day was it, anyway?_

She pushed herself up on one elbow to look around her room, hissing at the oncoming head-rush. Well, at least she knew there was alcohol involved. Apparently, she hadn't gone home to her hotel room, either. Hazy dawn light filtered through the net curtains into the foreign room, giving her little to go by as she scanned the decidedly plain walls and furniture. At that moment, she felt movement brush against her thigh, and froze in fear. Breathing slowly, she turned her head to where her company slept, wondering what nameless individual she had gone home with; or even worse, a not-so-nameless Flash. She practically choked up relief when she was met with the sound face of Annabelle, and the night's happening's flooded back into her brain. All that panic for nothing. Of course there was no way Kelly would have let herself be lead on by a stranger. Grinning fondly, she ran her fingers along the line of Annabelle's collarbone,

"Hey sweetie," She cooed in a sugar-sweet tone, "According to your bloody clock, it's time to wake up!"

Annabelle flinched as cold fingers touched her skin, and her eyes flittered open, then wider, eyebrows arching in alarm,

"Mmfh?" Kelly didn't catch much of her cry of confusion, as most of it was lost in the pillow. Instead, she laughed at the comical expression on her friend's face.

"Don't look at me like that, Fritton! We're both fully dressed, so no problems there."

Annabelle blinked blankly, before recollection shone in her dark orbs, "Oh, of course. I forgot for a second there. You got drunk, Kel. Real drunk!"

_Oh, yeah. I did_. Rubbing her head in mock pain, Kelly smiled, "It feels like it! So, why the early wake-up call?"

"Normally I'd have to start getting ready for work now" Annabelle grinned sheepishly in embarrassment at her own ditzy-ness, "I guess I forgot to turn it off!"

"Never mind." The older girl smiled, letting her head sink back down onto the pillow, eyes riveted on her friend. Annabelle, feeling conscious under her gaze, sat up awkwardly,

"Well, since we're up, do you want breakfast?"

A sigh, "Breakfast would be great."

Annabelle literally tumbled out of bed and power-walked across the room in her nightclothes, "I'll only be a minute. You can get changed if you want." With that, she left the room. Kelly, left to her own devices, sat up in bed and sized up her appearance in the mirror doors of the wardrobe on the other side of the room. Her hair was messy and knotted, her makeup was smudged across her face (and partly onto Belle's pillow, whoops) and her white blouse was stained with various drinks. God knows where her tie had gone, and her skirt had ridden most of the way up.

"Christ, I look a mess" She still couldn't stop a stupid smile spreading over her features at her hilarious getup. Dressing in her old uniform brought back years of fond memories; not only that, but it seemed to get Annabelle's attention. Now she did feel a little silly, but there was no way she'd let that show.

Pushing back the covers and wishing she'd had more time to lie in peace with Annabelle before she scarpered off, she swung her legs off the bed and rose stiffly, feeling a mild hangover tugging at the corners of her mind. Of course, she was going to have to pretend it was worse than it actually was, but that was a small price to pay. Her initial goal was to embarrass and mess with Annabelle, something she always enjoyed doing to other people- it came as part of her friendship (and if she was not mistaken, Annabelle enjoyed it well enough too) The last few moments before she drifted into sleep were, however, a little less planned and a lot less well thought-out. She was sure for a moment that Annabelle was going to confess to her. It was definitely about time, although she would miss using her subconscious crush as teasing ammo. But when Annabelle had backed out, she was disappointed in a way she thought she would never be; in a moment of uncharacteristic, tender sincerity, she had leaned over and placed a brief and uncertain kiss on her friend's lips. She had even surprised herself.

_Well, at least I don't have to answer any questions just yet._

She padded bare-foot across the carpet and unhooked her bag from the handle of the wardrobe, guessing Belle must have put it there for her. Prepared as always, she had brought a spare change of clothes in case she should find herself in a situation akin to this. Unbuttoning her shirt and shrugging it off her shoulders, she unzipped the bag and pulled out a long-sleeved shirt and a woollen jumper, just as she heard the doorknob turn. Annabelle clattered in noisily; swearing as orange juice spilled onto the tray it was balanced on and dripping onto her hands. Kelly swivelled her head to look over her shoulder, back to the door and to the intruder, a surprised look on her face,

"You could have at least knocked!"

Annabelle had blushed furiously and backed out of the room, apologizing repeatedly. Kelly laughed and told her she really didn't care, and that she was only joking, and that she had seen more whilst changing for PE class, but Annabelle was more humiliated than sorry and apologized even more in her defence. They ate breakfast in almost unbroken silence, until Kelly finished her slice of toast and gave a lengthy stretch,  
"Got any plans for today?"

Annabelle pulled at a loose strand of string on the hem of her shirt, "I was kind of hoping I could spend the day with you," She saw Kelly's eyebrows raise, and shook her head frantically, "If you have things to do, I could always do… Paperwork and stuff"

"I'm on holiday in my home; I have _nothing _to do," Kelly smirked, "Thanks to someone. If you want to spend the day together, together it is!"

---------

Winter mornings, Annabelle decided, were glorious. She breathed out into the chilling air and watched with that necessary wonder as her breath condensed in front of her face. Tartan coat drawn tightly around herself, feet scuffed on the still frosted-white grass of the park, she also noted how much more pleasant they were with Kelly. The raven-haired girl was filled with an unusual enthusiasm, laughing gleefully at a terrier puppy that raced between her feet and yelling nonsensical words at a fat old swan that squatted at the edge of the lake. Occasionally she would stumble and complain of a headache, but return straight back to her upbeat antics; Annabelle guessed she must be trying to hide her hangover in an act of bravery, and smiled into her collar, mouthing 'adorable'. Kelly, of course, knew her fake ailment was very convincing and pranced on her way. In the centre of the park, she spotted a hotdog stand parked up on the gravel. She turned her gaze on Annabelle,

"Hey, do you want a hotdog?"

Annabelle had shaken her head in the negative, but Kelly had bought one anyway, paying the man in the stand and dragging her over to a nearby bench.

"You sure you don't want any?" Kelly asked, yanking Annabelle down so she next to her.

"No, I'm good. You can have it"

"I don't want it."

"…Well, maybe we can just use it to warm our hands up?"

"Are you cold?" Kelly ran her eyes over Annabelle's pale face and pink nose sternly,

"A little" Annabelle admitted, rubbing her face.

"Here" Kelly passed the food to Annabelle, unwrapped her own scarf and draped it around her friend's neck.

"Thanks…"

"You're welcome."

Despite Annabelle's suggestion, the pair soon found a better use for the impulse-bought hotdog; pulling off the ends of the bread and throwing them to the pigeons that had started to congregate around their feet. They laughed as the birds hopped around, cooing and squabbling over tiny grains of bread, lost in the serenity of the moment. When all the bread was gone and the meat disposed of in the bin, the two girls sat in silence once more. Kelly decided now would be a good time to breach a subject she had been toying with in her mind all morning.

"Say, 'Belle…" She murmured, scooting closer to her, "Didn't you have something you had to tell me today?"

"I did?" Annabelle froze, "I… I don't think so…"

"You said you did last night. You promised." Kelly purred close to her ear, and Annabelle felt the sharp contrast of cold air and hot breath,

"Well, actually, I think that…" Annabelle paused mid-sentence, then eyed Kelly suspiciously, "…Wait, I thought you were drunk last night?"

Kelly, caught off-guard, leaned back and feigned disinterest, "Well, I just seem to remember…"

"Is there anything else you remember?"

"No"

"Not even this?" Annabelle cocked one eyebrow, before leaning brazenly across the bench and giving Kelly a fleeting, almost tasteless kiss.

"M-maybe" Kelly stumbled.

"Kel. Were you really drunk last night?" Annabelle crossed her arms across her chest.

"…Maybe… No. I wasn't." She regained her mental footing quickly, staring straight back at the younger girl.

"…I can't believe this, Kel. Did you actually take advantage of me?"

"N-no! Well, I guess, but I was just messing around…" Kelly struggled, shocked that the normally quite Annabelle was so quick to attack her.

"Just messing around?" Annabelle's voice rose in pitch, "Do you ever think of who you're hurting when you're 'just messing around'? Do you even care?" She shook her head, "I thought we were past that, Kel. I thought I could trust you to be sincere."

"Annabelle, listen! It was supposed to be a joke at first, but I swear…"

"A joke, huh?" Eyes narrowed, "If that's all I appeal to you as," She stood from the bench and turned away from Kelly, who was staring up at her in shock and surprise, "Then I suggest you find yourself some better company." With that, she turned and walked steadily away, willing her eyes not to overflow. She had been about to spill her heart out to Kelly, who apparently saw it as one big jest at her cost. She heard the bench creak as Kelly got to her feet behind her,

"'Belle, wait!"

She didn't turn around. She didn't stop. When she heard Kelly's boots click against the cold tarmac of the path, she began to run. Half of her wanted to collapse emotionally and just sink into Kelly's arms, but her fierce anger made her legs spur into action. Her breath smoked from her nose as she raced across the green, ignoring the swan that squawked in annoyance as she pelted past it, ignoring the terrier that bounded at her heels for a moment, and most of all ignoring Kelly's breathless cries to slow down. She didn't stop until she was out of the park, across the road and outside the corner shop, where she bent over to catch her breath, willing the stitch in her side to stop burning. She wiped furiously at her wet eyes, wondering if she had made the wrong move. She might have lost Kelly for good now; the older girl wasn't a huge fan of 'forgive-and-forget'. Through her blurring senses, her ears suddenly complained as a harsh screeching noise from behind her hit them, followed by a hollow-sounding bang.

The pigeons in the park rose into the air, wings beating in panic-stricken chaos.

* * *

_Chapter was mostly inspired by the song 'Bright Eyes', everyone who's reviewed (who I'm sorry for making wait for this) and Valvox because tbh I wouldn't have bothered writing if you didn't complain so much :P One more chapter? Maybe two? Don't know yet. Anyway thanks for reading.  
_


	8. Guessing Game

_Well, well, well. We're finally at the end_. And urgh, good job, too! _I've ummed and ahhed about putting this chapter up -it's horribly cliche- but I really don't have time to revise it again_. _So on a very rushed note, enjoy!_

* * *

Numbing shock clawed at Kelly's mind. She sat stock still for a moment, watching Annabelle walk steadily away from her, not quite able to comprehend the last few moments of their conversation. Annabelle had snapped, big time. It was a first for the younger girl; she might be a leader but she always played Kelly's puppy, forgiving and shy and maybe even a little scared of her. So the harsh words and back-turning had left the dark-haired senior at a complete loss. She rose to her feet quickly in an attempt to turn the situation around,

"Belle, wait!"

_Had she really just made a mistake? Had Kelly's plan failed? _ She shook her head _Duh. That's a given. For goodness sake, stop her!_

When Annabelle didn't immediately stop and apologize, Kelly was concerned. She worried her bottom lip as she strode after her friend, cursing her awful slip-up.

_Why couldn't I have left her to come out with it herself? What's this obsession with…control?_

The walk turned into a power-walk, then into a jog. She saw the curls ahead of her bounce as their owner forced herself into a sprint, which Kelly matched.

_I can catch her, easy. _  
The park flashed by and was behind her in an instant, and she felt the concrete pavement under her shoes.

_Almost…_

There was a sudden blaring in her ears, which startled her enough to turn her head in curiosity.

* * *

The bang made Annabelle start. She could hear the beating wings of birds taking off around her, and shivered, clutching at her side. Her muscles ached at the forced activity in the cold weather, her eyes stung from the mixture of tears and wind, and her heart pounded away in chest. There was no way she could force her body to keep going.

_I guess it's time to face the music. _

She turned around, expecting Kelly's lithe form to sprint up to her with eyes ablaze.

But she wasn't sprinting. She wasn't moving. She was curled up in a heap on the road in front of Annabelle. Her eyes weren't angry and full of fire. They were closed, clenched in agony for a brief moment, before relaxing, long eyelashes licking towards the tarmac. Time slowed. A man was shouting. Annabelle swayed on her feet, dazed, confused. She closed her eyes and rubbed at them, forced them open once more, praying it would go away. It didn't. Every time she looked it was still Kelly –_her Kelly- _that was lying in her own blood. There was a squealing noise that she didn't even notice was coming from her own lungs.

Reality kicked in, and Annabelle ran to where her friend lay, tears running free again, hands grabbing aimlessly at her clothes.

"Oh, god, oh, dear lord, no, no!" Panic rose, "Not…not you…Kelly"

A man standing near her desperately tried to explain how he wasn't to blame, about how she came out of nowhere, but Annabelle was past caring. She needed to get help…

* * *

"Miss?"

_Tick, tock. Tick, tock._

"Excuse me, miss?"  
Annabelle looked up drearily,

"Oh…sorry"

A nurse stood above her, hands on hips, "Can I get you a drink?"

"No, thankyou" She replied dryly, sinking further into her chair. "Um… How is Kelly?"

"It's a bit early to tell. She needs rest, but everything looks fine at the moment" The nurse gave a sympathetic half-smile and pattered away down the tiled hall, the sound causing an empty, resounding echo. She sighed and let her muscles relax a little.

It had only been a few hours. The ambulance had come screeching up the road with sirens blazing, taking Kelly and, reluctantly, Annabelle, to the hospital. Annabelle tried to cheer herself up, thinking about how outraged and embarrassed Kelly would be, waking up on the white linen sheets… but it didn't work, it only worried her more. She felt sick to the pit of her stomach, unable to follow as her friend was wheeled away, and had taken refuge in a chair from which she hadn't moved from since she sat there in the first place. Every five minutes her eyes would wander up to the clock, then back down to her restless fingers that writhed in her lap. It was all she could do to stop herself from breaking down right there.

"Annabelle?"

"…I don't want a drink" She huffed, not looking up.

"I know" She heard a soft thump as someone sat next to her, "How are you doing?"

There was no mistaking Roxy's unique voice, "I'm…fine"

"I came as soon as you called," Roxy muttered, "I'm so sorry, 'Belle"

"Don't be" Annabelle whispered, remembering her frantic phone call to Roxy after arriving, "It's my fault. If I hadn't been such a bitch, she wouldn't have had to run after me. She wouldn't have been…" She paused and bit her lip.

"Don't be ridiculous" Her successor chastised softly, "It's no-one's fault. These things… are unpredictable"

"…You know the worst part?" Annabelle continued, ignoring her, "I love her, Rox. I really do. I was going to tell her, but… It didn't seem like such a good idea after I'd started. I got angry at her when she brought it up again… If we do remain friends after this… I'll never be able to tell her."

"That's not as bad as you think, y'know. So, she doesn't know. What matters is that you know, and you can sort yourself out from there"

"You think so?"

"I know so"

Annabelle gave a slight smile, "Good. Thankyou, Rox."

"Anytime"

They sat together in silence for what felt like an age. Annabelle was relieved to have some dependable company, and the report on Kelly was looking good. As long as she could sort herself out afterwards… Everything would be fine.

The silence was shattered by a doctor bursting through the doors, carrying multiple files in his arms. The two St Trinian's stood up to attention,

"How's Kelly?" They asked in unison. The doctor's gaze flickered between the two of them before answering, and Annabelle swore she saw a flash of intimidation in his eyes; oh, it was good to be back.

"Well… She's lost more blood than we initially thought. It also looks like her wounds may have become infected. If it gets any worse than this, we may have to take more drastic measures." Silence met his answer. He took a few wary steps back, "I'm sorry"

"D-drastic?" Annabelle stuttered, fear pulsing in her system again.

"We could perform surgery to remove the infection, but she's already looking quite weak."

Annabelle and Roxy shared a worried and fearful look. The doctor left hurriedly, checking over his shoulder as he pushed the double doors open. Neither of them moved.

"Annabelle…" Roxy started, reaching out a hand, but she knocked it carelessly away.

"It's ok… Kelly's strong" She sniffled, sitting back in the chair, "She'll do fine"

They glanced at eachother out of the corner of their eyes. Both knew what the other was too afraid to voice.

* * *

It was dark outside. Annabelle had seen through the blinds of the window across the hall some time ago. It was evening and the restless winter night was setting in. There hadn't been word of Kelly in a while. Roxy had taken the lull as an opportunity to report back to the school, teachers and pupils alike. Annabelle had, in all truth, forgotten about them. Although school was out, the dorms still buzzed with the life of many children who could not make it home this holiday, as well as the teachers to supervise them. They probably thought they were off on some wild excursion, causing a riot somewhere, just like old times. She had refused to leave the hospital since the minute they had arrived. Her poor heart had fretted away in its cage, her mind not at ease for so much as a second, until they both wore themselves out, letting her body slip into a troubled and light sleep.

_Ding~Dong! Ding~Dong!_

The clock ringing brought her rushing from her slumber. Weary eyes rose to the clock. Half nine; exactly 12 hours she had been here. What was happening? She rose unsteadily to her feet and tapped the nearest doctor on the shoulder,

"Excuse me, Kelly…?"

"We started surgery some time ago. She's weak and we don't know what is going to happen yet. Let the experts do their job; it's all you can do now. I'm sorry."

The brunette sobbed audibly; she really couldn't take any more of this emotional rollercoaster she was stuck on. In a frantic fury, she turned away from the doctor and ran through the halls, desperate to get some fresh air into her lungs.

* * *

It had turned much colder since the last time she stood outside. The icy air pricked at Annabelle's skin, and she snuggled into the scarf Kelly had given her, inhaling its scent. Knotting it between her fingers, she silently prayed for Kelly to be ok, for everything to go as planned and trying to ignore the growing paranoia in her stomach.

"Annabelle? What are you doing out here?" Roxy clambered out of her car, locking it swiftly and hurrying over to her dejected looking friend. Annabelle raised her head; her skin was white and streaked with red, and her eyes were surrounded by dark circles.

"They're operating" She gulped, "Oh, Rox… What if… What if…" She collapsed into the other girl, her fists balling up against her collarbone.

Roxy wrapped an arm around Annabelle and tried to console her, "Don't 'what if' yet, Annabelle. She's strong. You said so yourself."

The near-defeated just whimpered into her neck, "I can't believe this happened…"

"Let's get inside, before we freeze" Roxy cooed gently, and Annabelle couldn't muster the strength to protest.

* * *

"I'll get you a drink. Stay here, I won't be long"

Left by herself again, Annabelle leant against the walls of the hall, one leg bent at the knee and the flat of her foot also against the wall, steadying herself against her own dizziness. Her mind couldn't think anymore, her body would barely respond, she was just too tired. All she wanted was for Kelly to invite her to lie next to her again. No, she would settle with Kelly being absolutely fine but walking away with complete amnesia; just the knowledge of her safety would be enough.

_I swear I'll never take you for granted again, Kelly._

"You're Annabelle Fritton, yes?"

She turned her head to see a nervous looking nurse stood beside her, shifting on her feet.

"Yes… That's me"

"Um, I have some bad news"

_No…Stop._

"The surgery didn't go to plan…"

_Stop, please!_

"Kelly Jones… She's dead."

* * *

Annabelle felt the last of the colour drain from her face. She felt sick.

"…W-what…?" She stammered, lost in shock.

"I'm so sorry" The nurse kept her gaze at the floor and didn't stop shifting uncomfortably. Annabelle saw Roxy's faint outline behind the nurse, her form just a mere, out-of-focus blur. The rock-chick bowed her head and wordlessly walked past Annabelle, presumably to relay the news to the school.

"Where… is she now?"

"Down the hall, room 154. It's on your right."

She gave a slight nod and brushed past the young nurse, unstable on her feet and unable to feel the floor; she felt like she was floating. Her head spun, her mind refused to believe what she'd been told. There's no way. There's just no way.

She pushed down on the door handle to room 154, holding her breath. The girl tucked in the covers of the hospital bed was undeniably Kelly. Her black hair, no matter how blood-matted and tousled, was still unmistakable.

The computer at her side was silent.

A choking sob erupted from Annabelle's throat as she stumbled into the room carelessly, falling to her knees at the bedside,

"Oh, Kelly…Kelly! Oh god…" She whispered, tears flowing once more, but at a much heavier rate. Brushing the knotted hair from her face, she ran a finger down her cheek. She looked so… gentle. Gentler than Annabelle had ever seen Kelly look before.

"Kelly, what am I going to do now?" She wailed, "You… left so early. This is my entire fault, Kel! I'm so sorry I called you back to England. You should be on a beach tanning yourself right now!" The hysterical sobbing continued as she picked up Kelly's hand and nuzzled it, "Or, at least I shouldn't have been so harsh at you. Please forgive me, Kel. Don't leave me on bad terms with you forever!" Her apology poured from her mouth, "And… I'm sorry I refused to tell you. I did promise you." Her voice lowered in pitch and she tried to restrain the crying with a long set of sniffles, "I wanted to tell you that… I love you, Kelly Jones. Not just as a friend… My feelings… I'm sure they ran deeper than that. Ever since that day you welcomed me to the school, I've had eyes only for you. I wanted to protect you… But when you need me I failed you. I'm so…sorry…It's too late for anything now…" She trailed off, bawling again into Kelly's hand, her hair cascading down her shoulders and back.

_Mhmmhmmm!_

Annabelle fell silent for a second, unwilling to move. She thought she had heard something, and looked around the room, then towards the door, expecting to see Roxy, or the twins, or Miss Fritton, or someone. But there was no-one there. She turned around, about to write it off, when she heard it again, clearer.

_Hahahaha~!_

She hadn't noticed it before, but… Was that a pulse in Kelly's wrist? She checked again, and was sure she felt a tiny beating. She looked up at her friend's body, and was shocked to see her chest convulsing with barely-constrained laughter. She looked at the computer screen fearfully; it was still dead and showed no sign of a heartbeat from Kelly's body. Was she imagining it? Or was it a dream? Had this all been a dream? Perhaps it was still morning, and she had rolled out of bed and remained asleep and Kelly was chortling at her antics. The stupefied brunette pinched her arm experimentally; no, it wasn't a dream. She looked back at her friend and dearly hoped she wouldn't have to come to the conclusion that she was being haunted.

Kelly's deep brown eyes burst open and she stopped trying to conceal her laughter, letting it shake her entire form.

"Oh, Annabelle! You can stop looking like that; it's your girlfriend, alive and laughing!"

Annabelle blinked a pair of wet eyes, "…Alive? Girlfriend? What's going on?" She asked meekly in a hoarse voice.

"The surgery went fine! Everything turned out ok!"

"But… The nurse told me… I thought…"

"Well, when I woke up, I asked her if she could tell you I was dead. Just to see your reaction. Blackmail works wonders. Oh, and your expression! God, I wish I had time for secret cameras."

Annabelle's cheeks flared up at the realisation that she had been brutally tricked, "You mean, this was all just a ploy to see how I would react? What about Roxy?"

"Oh, she was in on the little 'secret', she popped in just before you did."

"Whu…Wha…" Annabelle opened and closed her mouth like a goldfish, thoroughly confused and annoyed.

"By the way…" Kelly grabbed Annabelle's hand and yanked her up onto the bed, "Sure, it takes me tonnes of steel hurtling into me for me to realise, but…" She gave a perfect smile, "I love you, too" Dragging the still-dazed Annabelle forward, she raised her head off the pillow and pressed her lips against those of the girl she was sure she was crazy about. Clumsily and hesitatingly Annabelle reacted, feeling her heart beat like a drum as her lips slid over Kelly's in response. She really should be angry… but that can wait until later. She pushed her free hand into Kelly's bob, curling her fingers into her hair, taken up in the instict of the moment.

"Oh, dear. Is this a bad time?"

The two pulled apart quickly to see Roxy stood in the doorway, Tania and Tara each holding one of her hands, Miss Fritton peering over her shoulder and a small assortment of other St Trinian's girls hovering nearby.

"Oh my gosh, Kelly and Annabelle are in lurrve!" Tara chortled, giving her sister a high-five.

"Uh…" Kelly gave Annabelle a guilty look, "Explanations first, kissing later?"

"Whatever" Annabelle shrugged, _All I really want to do right now is sleep..._

* * *

_And there you have it, people. I know, you can shoot me now xD Anyway TECHNICALLY it's not done yet, I still have an epilogue to put up later in the week. It's just something small to tie a few ends together. And wowzers, I've actually, honest-to-goodness finished a story! First time for everything, no? I have all you reviewers to thank, especially the ones who reviewed regularly, like pinkcheesy, WednesdaysGirl, AbstractRainbow and the rest of youu. And extra extra special-y thanks to Valvox! Yayyy =)_

_Now, I better go before Kanye interrupts me.** Diolch yn fawr/ Hwyl fawr!**  
_


	9. Epilogue: Time

Summer was opening its lazy embrace upon the British countryside, lashing the hedgerows and crops and quaint old farmhouses with sunshine and warmth and a general feeling of contentment. The old building that housed the anarchic St. Trinian's school for young 'ladies' was certainly not missing out on the glorious mid-year weather, either, and neither was it's inhabitants. If an outsider were to be brave enough-or stupid enough- to venture down the drive today, it might take a lot of convincing to make them believe this was the same school they read about in the papers. Even Kelly Jones had to admit, it was strange seeing the school so peaceful, and it was an oddly welcome change.

From her perch on the cushioned windowsill, she could see a good part of the school grounds through the glass. The hockey team had abandoned their game and sat in the goals, fanning their faces from exhaustion. When she noticed a figure sprawled out in the middle of the pitch, several hockey sticks propped up against it, she was concerned; until she noticed the unmistakable frizzy hair of Matron and relaxed. Most of the school had congregated down on the lower field, where Miss Maupassant was setting up a Barbeque with the Bursar- though he was doing a lot more staring and drooling than helping load the charcoal. Kelly's attention was finally drawn to a group of Fourth Formers who were stretched out on the fine-trimmed lawn not too far from the window, their eyes closed to shield them from the light. The dark-haired girl ran a finger over her lower lip in slight distress as she worked her brain to remember the names of the girls. None sprang to mind.

It had been a long time since she was part of the school. Years, even. She had stopped counting. A lot had happened since she first paid her old school a visit.

The most obvious change had been Annabelle. They were close back then, they always had been; Annabelle needed someone to cling onto and Kelly sensed strength and potential in her younger counterpart. Even so, she would never have guessed that now, seven years since the scared, easily intimidated Annabelle Fritton washed up on St Trinian's doorstep, the two would be sharing a relationship. Kelly and Annabelle. You never heard one name without the other. It had been tough at first; Kelly had laughed like an idiot when Annabelle tried to kiss her ('Annabelle Fritton? Kissing me? Oh, the wonders never cease!'). Annabelle often felt a sort of inferiority complex around her older partner. But it worked. God knows, it worked. And neither of them would change a thing.

Camilla had fallen ill late the earlier summer and found herself in no fit state to run the school any longer. She had grudgingly taken leave until she recovered; she undoubtedly would recover. If she was any sturdier she'd have to be made of steel. Much to everyone's surprise and/or resentment, she had 'loaned' the post of Headmistress to Annabelle (just as her own aunt had before her) who nervously accepted. There had been murmurs in the staff room about her incompetence, but deep down they all knew she could do it, and do a bloody good job of it, too. Camilla wasn't too bummed about not being at the school, for Geoffrey had volunteered (yes, volunteered, not forced/blackmailed/kidnapped!) to stay by her side until she got better. She was chuffed, to say the least.

Kelly had kept up her work as a spy until she had found it was keeping her away from home for too long, at which point she promptly quit. Both her employers and Annabelle begged her not to, but she reassured both that if it wouldn't allow her to be around the people and places she loved, she didn't want it. Quitting MI7 wasn't as easy as she let on, and at some point things would get difficult again, but for now she allowed herself to bask in her own freedom. She was still looking for a new career; Roxy had jokingly suggested that she modelled lingerie, but Annabelle's fiery gaze had shut her up.

Roxy had left St Trinian's with the same sort of reputation as any other ex-head girl. The first years of her reign had sobbed and clung to her waist as she promised them she'd visit. To Kelly's annoyance, she upheld this promise far better than she had herself. She remembered, in particular, one evening when the rock-chick had dropped by after releasing her brand-new single and the school had crowded around any tv they could find, awaiting the Official Top 40 to announce the chart results. Roxy's face of humiliation was priceless when she came in at number 11, beaten to the top ten by the Banned of St Trinian's who sat rather pleased with their new placement at 9.

With this year being Annabelle's first as Headmistress, she had the power to choose the next head girl. She deliberated over this for weeks until she finally came back with a solution, which when whispered in Kelly's ear, caused both girls to beam in delight. Tania and Tara became the first Head Girl duet in the history of the school, and no-one argued with the decision. Those who disagreed were probably bound with ropes in the corner of some disused classroom along with some government members and bank workers, anyway.

Kelly gave a contented sigh that fogged up the glass slightly. The years had been tough but everything had ended in smiled and laugher, and… With the tip of her fingernail, she doodled an umbrella on the misted window and wrote her and Annabelle's names downwards underneath it in improvised kanji- something she had learnt whilst working in Japan. She gave a fleeting smile to the disappearing picture, then turned her head to where her girlfriend sat, writing furiously on several sheets of paper.

"Annabelle?" She cooed, "You nearly done with that?" When she got no response, she knitted her brow momentarily, and then decided to take a different approach. She kicked her heel-clad feet upwards so they balanced against the vertical wall of the alcove created by the window, causing her skirt to fall back loosely around her hips.

"An-na-belle…" Every syllable was stressed for the effect, her voice purposefully pitched low. The brunette raised her head from her paperwork curiously, only to find her cheeks reddening at the sight that met her eyes,

"Kelly! I'm working, stop distracting me!" She whined pitifully. Kelly stuck her tongue out in response,

"You've been busy all day" Kelly groaned.

"How was your day, then?"

"Pretty boring. I helped Miss Cleaver with a hockey lesson earlier, though."

A spark of jealousy flickered across Annabelle's eyes, but it was quickly extinguished,

"One of the first years asked me something earlier"

"Oh, yeah?" Kelly leaned forward, intrigued.

"Yeah. She asked me if I was a man in drag" Annabelle pouted.

Kelly's face was unreadable for a moment, her dark eyes still enquiring, before the first year's jest dawned on her, and she broke into laughter, "Oh, really? Ha, that's a good one!"

Annabelle looked hurt, "Wha-What? I… I don't look like a transvestite, do I?"

The older girl wiped at the corner of her eye, "No, silly, it's just… Ah, never mind. I'll explain later. If it helps, you look mostly woman to me." Her remark was met with a bottle of TiPex being launched at her head, which missed and exploded on the wall behind her, "Oi, careful with that stuff! It takes days to wash it out of my hair!" Kelly warned, dodging another bottle, "Oh, this is war!

Annabelle gave a high-pitched squeal and leapt from her desk and Kelly's hands grasped at whatever stationary she could find, throwing them across the room at her girlfriend. Annabelle retaliated by reaching for a pillow from the sofa and thunking it with as much force as possible into her 'adversaries' side, causing feathers to explode into the air. Grunting and giggling and pulling white feathers from her dark hair, Kelly pushed her down onto the sofa, pinning her limbs to the leather

"I win."

The two looked around the room in silence, taking in the black-and-white splodges on the walls caused by the TiPex and ink, the feathers still floating to the ground and the paper that had been knocked from the desk,

"That better be all legible, _Jones_!" Annabelle frowned sternly, turning her wrist and pointing at the paperwork that lined the carpet.

"Shut up, _Fritton_" Kelly growled, leaning down and kissing her roughly on the lips.

There were no restraints between the two anymore. No-one even batted an eyelid if they happened to walk in on the two snogging in a corner; it was pretty much common-place stuff by now. Hands roamed further, as much by memory as by touch, and Kelly laughed into Annabelle's mouth.

"Whut?" Annabelle slurred, pulling back slightly. Kelly's face was thoughtful for a second, before she gave a definite nod,

"Yup," She grinned, "_Definitely_ all woman"

"Oh, shut up!" Annabelle groaned playfully, pushing her off with the hand that was freed during their make-out session, "Let me put my work away."

Kelly nodded silently and sat down properly on the sofa, leaning back lazily. Her fingers trailed under the hem of her shirt, running down a long scar that marked her skin; a movement that had become somewhat of a habit.

"Hey…Annabelle?" She asked, touching the scar again.

"Yeah?" Annabelle glanced over her shoulder from where she had knelt down to retrieve her papers,

"Do you remember…?" Hesitation.

"Remember what?"

"Never mind" Kelly blinked, "Do you want to go out to eat this evening?"

"Sure, do you have anywhere planned?"

"Uh…kinda." Kelly ran a hand through her hair, the other hand sliding possessively over her shoulder bag that she had left on the arm of the sofa earlier.

"Then that would be lovely" Annabelle smiled fondly.

The smile was returned. Kelly had the day to reminisce about the past, and the night to work out the future.

* * *

_And there you have it~!_ (Yes, I DID forget I was supposed to write this. Your point is? :P )  
_Hope you enjoyed the little extra bit, tried to make it much more light-hearted._  
_Virtual-cookies for noticing the references, by the way._  
_Thanks for reading, everyone! _


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